Welcome to My Roller Coaster

The other night in the bath, Sasha started signing something. It took me a few tries to figure it out... she was signing TRAIN where I referred to the DRAIN. So now I've learned the sign for drain, but we haven't had an occasion to teach it to her yet.

She also tried raisins again and can now manage to chew them. So I researched and taught her the sign for RAISIN.

I don't know if I posted here when Sasha's tooth #5 made its appearance. She has the two front top, two front bottom. Then she got the top left. We figured the top right would be next. Nope. Today I noticed her bottom right. It looks as though it probably cut through a couple of days ago. She has been chewing on her fingers and drooling more lately, so that makes sense. She'll have a mouth full before we know it.

Elimination Communication
I still feel that our break for my knee pain / surgery had an ill effect on our EC relationship. Still, I've been putting forth more effort. Plus Sasha is starting to climb out of bed on her own in the morning. The other day she sat up, gave me a kiss, then headed out of bed. I, of course, followed her, but not before she wandered down the hall to see Daddy.

I've got the timing down pretty well now, how long to wait from when she wakes up until I take her to the toilet. Then, on a good day, I've also got the timing to her 2nd toilet trip. She goes about 5-10 minutes after waking, then again about 20 minutes later. Then she can go for a couple of hours, especially if we go out. Those first two are easy to catch, though, as are the ones after naps since they work pretty much the same.

Signing
Sasha consistently signs for milk and occasionally for cracker. She still uses the sign more but it usually means she wants a drink. Unless we're doing something really fun, then she really means do it more! She was recently fascinated by learning the sign for cat and a little less for dog. But then tonight she brought me a book, put it on the floor, and started signing for dog with both hands! It happened to be a cat, but this particular cat... could totally have been a dog. She loves to sign for cat, too!


Elimination Communication and Signing
It occurred to me today that I should work on signing for potty when I take her again. Admittedly, she sometimes has her eyes closed when we head into the bathroom. Perhaps if I could get her signing it, she would start letting me know when she needs to go! I couldn't tell you the last time I caught a poop! I always know when she has started, but it is too late then, basically.

I'd like to use finished more often in relation to the potty, but I hold her over the toilet with both hands, so it just isn't feasible. She still loves to follow Mommy and Daddy into the bathroom.

Sasha signs "more" when she wants a drink of water because I've often asked her if she wants "more" water. I also ask her if she wants "more" playing when I'm tossing her around on the couch.

She signs with my hands when she wants milk (tapping my hand to my chest). She also taps my chest or uses my hand to do it when she is having milk.

She kind of signs finished when asked if she is finished (with signing). This is one sign Daddy is good about using with her.

I've chosen my next sign I want to use for her: Help.

Sasha has recently picked up the sign for <breast>milk. She also handed me the Boppy cushion the other day when she wanted to nurse!

I have wanted Sasha to learn to blow since we got into swim lessons last Spring. Daddy & I have worked with her on it from time to time with no success. She was puffing today so Daddy worked with her on it and even got her to do it on command when I got home from work! I am so thrilled! I'm ready to get her back into a pool to try out blowing bubbles in the water now! I also want to get my bubble stuff out and see if I can get her to blow that kind of bubbles!

She does this cute little stomping / walking in place thing these days. It looks like a little dance, so Daddy moves his arms like he is dancing. So today she added that to her routine! It is (of course) SO adorable!

With my knee troubles and then my surgery, my trips taking Sasha to the potty really waned. It came down almost to just first-thing-in-the-morning trips. Since she has gotten SO mobile, she doesn't much care for sitting on the BBLP most of the time, but she will still go there if Daddy is on the toilet.

My knee is improving every day, so I'm starting to take her more often again. Or at least working on it. I still hold her over the toilet with her back to me, most of the time. I recently set her front-ways on the toilet and she did great that way. However, the 3rd time we did that, she pulled one foot back and it wound up in the toilet. I kind of jumped and she was startled and upset. I got her sock off and got her dry. When I held her over the toilet again (the usual way), she finished peeing.

I also held her over a sink recently and she will still go that way, too. It has more to do with position than anything, but I do still give her the verbal cue as well, "pss pss pss."

I'm really glad I'm getting back into the habit, but I'll be happier once we are back in the habit.

We took Sasha today for her 1 year well baby visit. Her head is now 18 3/4" around. She is 39 3/4" tall. And she now weighs 23 pounds, 5 ounces. And she has lost her patience with medical staff. She has always been pretty laid back about it, but she has outgrown that. In fact, her doctor said that was normal. It makes sense to me when I think about how babies don't realize that they are a separate entity from their mothers for many months. She is her own person now and she didn't want these strangers messing with her!

She is wonderfully healthy, of course! The doctor asked us about communication and eating and mobility. We asked about her vision and squinting - he said we'll keep an eye on it, but not to worry at this point. She really just squints when she seems to think something is going to get too close to her eyes. We asked about scratching during diaper changes. She really is just exploring and grabbing - no cause for concern. I asked about strawberries - doc says it just depends on where you get them. I mentioned organic yogurt and he said that was fine. We also discussed peanut butter and since Tyler was allergic during her baby years, he thought it best to hold off on peanut butter for a while longer. We'll probably go ahead and wait until she is 2 for that, then. I also asked about the skin and nails (mostly skin) on her feet. She has callouses on her big toes and the skin sometimes comes off completely. He suggested using lotion and keeping socks on her. He wasn't concerned by this, either, and said it is most likely just due to how ambulatory she is. She does walk around a LOT!

We actually got into and out of that place in half an hour today! Yay! As for eating, I have become decidedly less psychotic / control freak about her new foods now that she is a year old. I still want her to eat healthy, but I don't feel the need to write each food on the calendar and be so cautious about how often she tries new foods. Oh, and as for her growth rate, she has leveled off. She is still above the normal (remaining in the range), but has curved off the way she is supposed to, so all is well on that front!

And a bonus portrait for good measure:

Got up this morning and got ready... We went to breakfast. Then to Target for Portraits! See the new icon? I'll post pics soon. Then to Southern Agriculture to talk to the guy that orders the tarantulas and to get crickets. Then to Walmart for groceries. Home for a bit... Out to get Tyler from school. Took Tyler to have her eye exam and pick out new glasses. Came home for a bit. Then took the girls to Tyler's first GS meeting of the year, mostly to discuss what they want to do this year. Troop is smaller this year, though that isn't really a bad thing. Took Tyler home, then came home to tell Elmo goodnight. Sasha waited up to poop, but I think she is working on sleep now.

Doesn't seem that busy now that I type it out, but it sure seemed that way as I was living it!

I'll have to tell you about the Elmo toy when I post the pics!

I am tickled that she likes to carry her diapers to the trash can. She hands them to me and then when I throw them away we clap.

While I was doing the dishes tonight, Sasha got into the cabinet for a plastic bowl and tried to put it into the dishwasher. I guess her dishes need washed, too. :-)

Sasha has the most beautiful voice.


Here she is, in her toy basket.

I think it is cute how she will put my hand on her or away from her depending on what she wants. "Hold my tummy Mommy." "Get your hand off my Mommy, I have exploring to do."

We put Sasha's shoes that my brother bought for her on her one day to walk to the laundromat here in our apartment complex. They fit perfectly and are made for learning to walk. I'm a big proponent of barefootin' as much as possible. She walked ALL the way to the laundromat, except on the grass where she has to be carried or she'll sit down and eat the grass instead. She loved the shoes! We got home and took her shoes off. She soon wanted them back! I put them back on and then she wanted them off again. They are kind of hard to put on, though.

She liked them so much that we found some new shoes for her today. They are a bit easier to put on and SO cute! They are pink and black OP Skate Shoes with Velcro closures. They have a clear window under the toes... which makes it so you can see if they fit or not! How cool is that?! I suck at checking shoes so I like that feature!

She loved having them on in the store. Then a while after we came home she was dragging me to the front door, so I put her shoes on and took her outside to walk around in the sunshine for a few minutes. I'd really like her to get a little time outside every day.

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Sasha raises her hands when she wants up (of course). Sometimes she even grunts. The trouble is, hands up and grunting is now her way to say she wants __________. There is often no telling what __________ may be. She does sign "finished" but it is kind of flailing rather than controlled movement. She has signed more a few times. And she occasionally signs for milk on my chest. I chose the sign for breastfeed which is to tap your chest above the breast.

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As we near the one-year mark, she is trying more foods. We went out to breakfast this morning. I ordered the usual sliced bananas so that she would have something to eat. Then our food came and I realized that I can stop special ordering for her now. She ate some banana slices, some of my eggs (I picked around the cheese for the most part), sausage, and a little bit of hash browns. She loves to eat what we eat so it is very convenient to feed her from our plates. The trick is to offer healthy choices... so we need to be eating healthy stuff, too!

Mind you, some stuff she sucks on and then drops. Some things she lets sit in her mouth and then spits it out or pulls it out or just lets it fall out of her mouth. Chicken is a perfect example. We had fish for dinner last night and she'll usually get it down, but last night she was spitting it out.

I'm planning for her first cake. I chose classic yellow cake with chocolate frosting. I picked up a muffin pan today and party themed liners. I think a cupcake is a much more appropriate size than the small cakes you get at the store. She will also be trying chocolate for the first time soon. The tradition is for Grandpa to give it, but I've already purchased some mini candy bars. I don't want her to have a full size Hershey's. The older girls looked ill by the time they finished them! They literally looked green. I think Dad may argue against me, but why would you want your child to feel sick? I realize they didn't EAT the entire thing, but they still turned green. Forget it.

So... does chocolate frosting count as chocolate? Because I'm planning out her birthday and if she eats chocolate frosting before she eats chocolate, I won't tell Dad. But then Elmo was surprised I was even going to give her frosting. I could give her a plain cupcake. I'm sure she'd still love it! I gave her a nibble of a couple of chocolate chip cookies today, but without the chips. She enjoyed that, too.

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Sasha has an appointment for 1 year portraits and then her 1 year well baby visit with the doctor. Both are about a week away.